Comfort and effectiveness remain a continuing challenge for engineers and designers of the interface between a mechanical ventilator and a patient. Such patient interfaces are currently employed for a variety of purposes including the delivery of non-invasive ventilation or for the delivery of pressurized air to persons who suffer from sleep disordered breathing conditions such as Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). In non-invasive positive pressure ventilation, a supply of air at positive pressure is provided by a blower to a patient interface through an air delivery conduit. The patient interface may take the form of a nasal mask, nose & mouth mask, full face mask or nasal prongs.
A mask may comprise (i) a rigid or semi-rigid portion which attaches directly to the air delivery conduit and (ii) a soft patient contacting portion. The rigid or semi-rigid portion, known as a shell or frame, may define a nose-receiving cavity, or a mouth covering chamber. Other forms of patient interface, such as nasal cannulae, comprise a pair of nasal prongs, nasal inserts or nozzles.
The soft patient contacting portion is typically known as a cushion or membrane and is generally shaped during manufacture to match the facial contours of a patient in order to provide the optimum seal.
An inherent characteristic of patient interfaces such as nasal masks or nozzle assemblies is that they do not seal the mouth region. A number of patients thus find that during sleep when muscles relax, mouth leak may occur. Alternatively some patients are naturally mouth breathers and thus find a nasal patient interface ineffective. Mouth leak is undesirable as among other difficulties, it may result in noise, increased treatment pressure to compensate for the leak or an increased load on the nasal passages and potentially nasal obstruction or a runny nose.
Patient interfaces such as full face masks or nose and mouth masks address this issue by sealing around both the nose and the mouth. Since nasal bridge anthropometry varies greatly between patients, the soft patient contacting portion or cushion must adapt to the shapes of individual patients. Typically this is not achieved for the entire range of patients and some form of leak occurs. The problem is heightened during sleep when the jaw moves and the head position changes. This action can often serve to dislodge the mask and cause leak. Since leak can be noisy and results in less-effective treatment, users often compensate by tightening the headgear more than is required. This is detrimental for patient comfort and can cause skin breakdown.
A further problem encountered by patients who are using full face, nasal or nose and mouth masks is that the portion of the patient interface that seals around the nasal bridge prevents the patient from wearing spectacles. Additionally it may give the sensation of being closed in, leading to a feeling of claustrophobia, particularly when combined with a mouth-sealing portion. A further disadvantage is that any leaks that may occur can affect the sensitive area surrounding the eyes.
One form of nasal assembly known as a nasal puff is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,782,832 (Trimble et al.). This device has a pair of nasal puffs together with a plenum chamber held in place with a harness assembly adapted to be worn over the head of the patient. The device does not provide a mouth seal.
Another form of known nozzle assembly is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,172 (Bordewick et al.). The patent discloses a device with nares elements mounted on an inflatable plenum chamber. Again this does not provide any structure for sealing the mouth.
One typical example of a known nasal mask is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,243,971 (Sullivan et al.). This has a ballooning seal in order to fit the patient's nose and facial contours but does not provide a mouth seal. The contents of this patent are hereby incorporated by cross-reference.
International publication number WO 01/97893 A1 (Frater et al.), the content of which is hereby incorporated by cross-reference, describes a mask system for delivering air to a user including a suspension mechanism. This suspension mechanism allows relative movement between a face-contacting portion and a mask shell.
A known example of a full face mask is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,513,526 B2 (Kwok et al.), incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Whilst providing a facial contour and sealing mechanism that incorporates both the nasal and mouth, this mask cannot flex to adapt to changes in jaw movement and head position throughout the night.
A known example of a nose and mouth mask is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,354 (Berthon-Jones et al.), the content of which is hereby incorporated by cross-reference.
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/0069872 A1 (Gradon et al.) describes a mouthpiece which seals the oral cavity against ‘mouth leak’. This mouthpiece includes both intra-oral and extra-oral sealing means and can be kept in place without the need for straps. International patent WO 01/95965 (Gradon et al.) describes a similar mouthpiece for supplying humidified gases to a user.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,571,798 B1 (Thornton) describes an oral device for improving a patient's breathing together with a connecting post that provides a standard interface to a CPAP patient interface. The oral device is said to extend the lower jaw of the patient and thus open the breathing passage. The oral device is clenched between the teeth which may lead to discomfort and if mask pressures are high can lead to the slow creep of gums around the teeth due to the sustained load.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,873,160 (Sturtevant) describes a cylindrical air chamber held in position by a mouth portion that extends between the lips and teeth. The mouth portion may prove irritating and lead to discomfort when used for long periods.
A problem with patient interfaces which incorporate oral appliances is that they can be uncomfortable for patients. Therefore, a need has developed in the art to address the problems of the prior art.